Plant Some Happiness
When I was young, I remember wanting to have a houseplant in my bedroom. My Mother and Grandmother were happy to oblige my request as long as I was the one watering it. I remember feeling so excited and proud that I was old enough to be able to tend to this little ivy I picked out for my room.
As the weeks went by, I tried to give it everything it needed, but it wasn't fairing very well in my room because of the lack of sun. I had a north facing window and that can be a death sentence to plants that require moderate to full sun. So, my Mother placed the little plant near a better window in the family room and it lasted for a bit of time there until some white flies got a hold of it. I was devastated and swore off gardening for years after that incident.
Many years went by and a friend of mine tried to persuade me into taking up indoor gardening again once I was settled in an apartment with full sun. I told her of my sad ordeal and how I never wanted to go back to gardening again due to my "black" thumb. She decided that she wasn't going to take no for an answer from me and gave me two spider plants as a gift one day.
Well, even though I was hesitant, I graciously took those plants into my home and gave them a nice comfortable spot near my kitchen window. These plants grew very well, in fact so well, that they are still alive today and have produced many, many offspring that I've proudly raised and given as gifts to other people.
These two plants were the start of a beautiful relationship with anything that grows again and now my relationship has bloomed into flowering plants and even fruit and vegetable plants. I have experimented with so many that I will try to put anything in a pot to see if it will grow and I have my friend to thank for this beautiful gift that she has given me.
Now, you are probably wondering what this story, though lovely, has to do with Fibromyalgia. Well, the answer is plenty. Gardening, even if it's only done indoors, is a great stress reliever, and a great source of happiness. There is just something wonderful and humbling about getting your hands dirty. It can put your life into perspective. I feel that putting my hands in soil is like a metaphor in a sense because I'm putting energy and love into something to see if it will grow, just like I put energy and love into trying be fabulous despite my condition.
I touch on houseplants a bit in my book, The Firbo Hand where I explain how plants can help you. But my self-discoveries are here in this blog. I hope this encourages some of you to try and plant some happiness for yourselves. Stay fabulous! And don't forget about the contest-- it's still going-- so keep commenting!
Love and friendship,
Kimberley
As the weeks went by, I tried to give it everything it needed, but it wasn't fairing very well in my room because of the lack of sun. I had a north facing window and that can be a death sentence to plants that require moderate to full sun. So, my Mother placed the little plant near a better window in the family room and it lasted for a bit of time there until some white flies got a hold of it. I was devastated and swore off gardening for years after that incident.
Many years went by and a friend of mine tried to persuade me into taking up indoor gardening again once I was settled in an apartment with full sun. I told her of my sad ordeal and how I never wanted to go back to gardening again due to my "black" thumb. She decided that she wasn't going to take no for an answer from me and gave me two spider plants as a gift one day.
Well, even though I was hesitant, I graciously took those plants into my home and gave them a nice comfortable spot near my kitchen window. These plants grew very well, in fact so well, that they are still alive today and have produced many, many offspring that I've proudly raised and given as gifts to other people.
These two plants were the start of a beautiful relationship with anything that grows again and now my relationship has bloomed into flowering plants and even fruit and vegetable plants. I have experimented with so many that I will try to put anything in a pot to see if it will grow and I have my friend to thank for this beautiful gift that she has given me.
Now, you are probably wondering what this story, though lovely, has to do with Fibromyalgia. Well, the answer is plenty. Gardening, even if it's only done indoors, is a great stress reliever, and a great source of happiness. There is just something wonderful and humbling about getting your hands dirty. It can put your life into perspective. I feel that putting my hands in soil is like a metaphor in a sense because I'm putting energy and love into something to see if it will grow, just like I put energy and love into trying be fabulous despite my condition.
I touch on houseplants a bit in my book, The Firbo Hand where I explain how plants can help you. But my self-discoveries are here in this blog. I hope this encourages some of you to try and plant some happiness for yourselves. Stay fabulous! And don't forget about the contest-- it's still going-- so keep commenting!
Love and friendship,
Kimberley
